Our service is unmatched by any composite company. We pride ourselves in being dedicated to providing you with the best customer experience and making your composite experience stress-free. This was my first year working with Fraternal Composite. Customer Service was friendly and helpful when I had questions that needed to be answered. The checklist that was emailed out was extremely helpful when planning the composite date. I have had a great time working with Fraternal Composite this year! Prices are awesome compared to what my chapter has done in the past.
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Providing the highest quality composites for colleges and universities across the country since 1954!. Raymond F. Gallman was born and raised in Upstate New York where he learned the value of hard work and perseverance at a young age. In 1954, he saw a need in the composite industry to innovate and improve the product that was being created for fraternities and sororities.
Fraternal Composite Service, Inc. is proud to support the Gallman White Foundation, a Not-For-Profit 501(c)(3) organization, whose mission is "sustainability for all life and to educate the public about the same." Here at FCS, we utilize renewable energy sources to reduce our carbon footprint. We conscientiously recycle, use recyclable materials, and run on LED lighting.
We here at Fraternal Composite Service, Inc. are looking to work with your chapter for years to come. Our philosophy is that we do not "sell" composites, instead we build relationships. We care, we listen, and we work with every client to provide the best possible product at the fairest prices. At FCS we have a very strict quality control process.
We appreciated everything that your company did to make our very first composite so beautiful! All of the girls love it and we are more than pleased with how it turned out! We can't thank you all enough for keeping us 100% informed the entire time! The customer service was wonderful and flexible. We had events that kept us rescheduling our picture day.
Reviews (10)
Cupp'S. Photo & Video Productions
May 07, 2022
I've been a photographer/videographer since 2005. I've worked for some awful companies and a couple good companies throughout my career. I've been working for FCS for a year now & I must say it's been an absolute pleasure to work for. Always paid properly, friendly staff, willing to help improve upon mistakes with professionalism and understanding. I am honored and grateful to be apart of this team.
Aaron Hall
Apr 25, 2022
Absolutely abysmal company. Their customer service and response time is the slowest I've ever had to deal with, their quality control is virtually nonexistent (had to get 4 new proofs until they finally spelled everyone's name right), and then they send you strangely worded emails to try to confuse you into thinking you have a longer contract than you do.
We are also now a year behind on composites because our 2019-2020 composite took over 12 months to arrive. Needless to say we will be going with a different company after this contract expires.
We are also now a year behind on composites because our 2019-2020 composite took over 12 months to arrive. Needless to say we will be going with a different company after this contract expires.
Zachary Wharton
Apr 09, 2022
This is the worst composite company I have yet to work with. We did a composite with them over Covid and not all of the people who were going to be on the composite could make it to the photo session. They informed us that we could have the people who weren't going to be able to make it send in photos of themselves. We were appreciative about this but when we got the proof, none of the people who who sent in photos were on it.
We tried contacting them about this and they said that they never got any of the files even though we submitted the photos to a portal they set up for us. This was already bad enough but when we went with a different composite company this year, they contacted us saying that we were contracted with them and would have to pay for any liquidated damages. Literally the biggest scam I have had to deal with.
We tried contacting them about this and they said that they never got any of the files even though we submitted the photos to a portal they set up for us. This was already bad enough but when we went with a different composite company this year, they contacted us saying that we were contracted with them and would have to pay for any liquidated damages. Literally the biggest scam I have had to deal with.
Mike Mast MikeMaster
Apr 09, 2022
If you're reading these reviews in hopes of finding a composite company for your student or professional organization, I implore you to steer clear of Fraternal Composite Service. Having personally endured a two-year contract with this company, I can confidently say that the management is abhorrent, the contracts are predatory, rates are deliberately misleading, and products are half-baked.
I had the privilege of overseeing a student professional organization of approximately 100 doctoral students, and partnered with FC with the hope of permanently switching the organization's composite partner, due to the previous going out of business (which we had been affiliated with for ~50 years). Given the events of COVID-19, we had postponed our 2019-2020 composite, and wanted to assemble both a 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 composite.
When emailed, the company has an array of automated answering services that redirect responses seemingly to nowhere. Service associates had virtually no idea the content of my emails or simply made no effort to address them without being explicitly reminded. At one point, I was reached out to by a gentleman who I assume was an owner/manager by phone who left an array of condescending voicemails, who seemed frustrated that I wouldn't immediately service his call during work hours (despite explicitly detailing times I would be available by phone in approximately 3 different emails).
In communicating with me, he treated me like a child and tried to lecture me on professionalism and responsibility (and I'm fairly certain he assumed I was an undergraduate student calling for a fraternity/sorority). From a business perspective, it was very clear that these bullying and redirection tactics ran deep through the organization (regardless of if they are intentional or not).
No matter how many times I asked based on the information present on the supplied photography rosters, I couldn't get a straight answer on just how much each composite would cost. When it came time to schedule, I received an extraordinarily brief email saying exactly what date and time the photo session would be, without any negotiation or dialogue.
The photographer arrived exactly at the time indicated for the formal start of the session, and made no effort to arrive prior for setup so we ended up losing approximately 20 minutes to photograph a majority of the organization, and we even had to lug his equipment/help setup to make things happen on time. Surprisingly, he was wonderful to interact with, and at the end I asked about the estimate, so we both totaled up the sum based on the rates listed on the contract. Oddly he claimed that in order to make the composite I had to agree to a contract extension (which seemed very desperate and shady).
They were slated for summer 2021 delivery. In the late summer of 2021, we had yet to receive anything or any communications and were told that they had frozen our order. After clarifying the situation, we were informed that we owed near $2K in hidden fees (and that's why production was halted). When we forwarded our individual copies of the contract and claimed that the price was inconsistent with their advertised rates, they haphazardly offered "courtesy discounts" that would make it equal to the agreed-upon price. Needless to say, KEEP THE RECEIPT.
We only received our final products in March of 2022. One of our composites was framed exactly as requested, whereas the other was framed in some sort of cheaply purchased IKEA frame that was partially damaged (and not agreed upon in the contract). TLDR: The management is condescending and inept, there's zero scheduling flexibility, and the contracts are predatory/extremely shady (they hide rate info, undisclosed fees, seemingly forced extensions).
I think FC operates with the expectation that there is so much student turnover that organizations will forget their BS, and that they can just pressure students into re-signing. Avoid at all costs.
I had the privilege of overseeing a student professional organization of approximately 100 doctoral students, and partnered with FC with the hope of permanently switching the organization's composite partner, due to the previous going out of business (which we had been affiliated with for ~50 years). Given the events of COVID-19, we had postponed our 2019-2020 composite, and wanted to assemble both a 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 composite.
When emailed, the company has an array of automated answering services that redirect responses seemingly to nowhere. Service associates had virtually no idea the content of my emails or simply made no effort to address them without being explicitly reminded. At one point, I was reached out to by a gentleman who I assume was an owner/manager by phone who left an array of condescending voicemails, who seemed frustrated that I wouldn't immediately service his call during work hours (despite explicitly detailing times I would be available by phone in approximately 3 different emails).
In communicating with me, he treated me like a child and tried to lecture me on professionalism and responsibility (and I'm fairly certain he assumed I was an undergraduate student calling for a fraternity/sorority). From a business perspective, it was very clear that these bullying and redirection tactics ran deep through the organization (regardless of if they are intentional or not).
No matter how many times I asked based on the information present on the supplied photography rosters, I couldn't get a straight answer on just how much each composite would cost. When it came time to schedule, I received an extraordinarily brief email saying exactly what date and time the photo session would be, without any negotiation or dialogue.
The photographer arrived exactly at the time indicated for the formal start of the session, and made no effort to arrive prior for setup so we ended up losing approximately 20 minutes to photograph a majority of the organization, and we even had to lug his equipment/help setup to make things happen on time. Surprisingly, he was wonderful to interact with, and at the end I asked about the estimate, so we both totaled up the sum based on the rates listed on the contract. Oddly he claimed that in order to make the composite I had to agree to a contract extension (which seemed very desperate and shady).
They were slated for summer 2021 delivery. In the late summer of 2021, we had yet to receive anything or any communications and were told that they had frozen our order. After clarifying the situation, we were informed that we owed near $2K in hidden fees (and that's why production was halted). When we forwarded our individual copies of the contract and claimed that the price was inconsistent with their advertised rates, they haphazardly offered "courtesy discounts" that would make it equal to the agreed-upon price. Needless to say, KEEP THE RECEIPT.
We only received our final products in March of 2022. One of our composites was framed exactly as requested, whereas the other was framed in some sort of cheaply purchased IKEA frame that was partially damaged (and not agreed upon in the contract). TLDR: The management is condescending and inept, there's zero scheduling flexibility, and the contracts are predatory/extremely shady (they hide rate info, undisclosed fees, seemingly forced extensions).
I think FC operates with the expectation that there is so much student turnover that organizations will forget their BS, and that they can just pressure students into re-signing. Avoid at all costs.
Abigail Bowman
Feb 13, 2022
If I could give this company a 0 I would. I have left several voicemails explaining that we will no longer be using their services. They would only contact old officers, when I was willingly leaving messages to give them my information. They rely on us as an organization to basically do everything, but then at the last minute they contacted me letting me know that they were already at my university for a "scheduled" appointment, THAT WE NEVER AGREED UPON. Very unbusinesslike and if you are thinking about signing up with this company, don't waste your time and effort! They are a scam.
Nicholas Chute
Dec 26, 2021
Critical: Professionalism Pretty awful owner who uses the business as his residence and lays his employees off every year. I probaly could have won a wrongful termination because I mentioned to the son in law that my promised raise never came. Whenever I ask myself how not to run a business or treat employees Raymond is at the top of my list.
Sydney Manske
Nov 06, 2021
Our sorority will not be renewing our contract due to a variety of reasons, however the top of the list includes not getting responses. Our last composite was photographed last October and we have not yet received our composite, only received proofs after multiple emails to various different emails (they did not let us know which email to even use in order to get a response) and I have not received an update from production in over a month.
We have no idea of the status of our last composite and unfortunately due to the contract we are currently in must stay with this unprofessional, unresponsive company for at least another year. We have paid in full for our last composite and have not received it after a whole year of "production." Still awaiting a response from them, have sent emails to production, scheduling, used the "chat" feature on their website and still nothing.
Other fraternities/sororities at our university that have used this company have already received their composites in September (photographs taken at the same time as us). They too had issues contacting this company.
We have no idea of the status of our last composite and unfortunately due to the contract we are currently in must stay with this unprofessional, unresponsive company for at least another year. We have paid in full for our last composite and have not received it after a whole year of "production." Still awaiting a response from them, have sent emails to production, scheduling, used the "chat" feature on their website and still nothing.
Other fraternities/sororities at our university that have used this company have already received their composites in September (photographs taken at the same time as us). They too had issues contacting this company.
Henry Scarlato
Aug 26, 2021
Worked with them for the past 4 years and each year the composite has at least 1 mistake. They take FOREVER to send each composite out. Took so long(over a year) for our second to last composite to be finished that they comped the our next one and we still haven't received the new one 10 months after photos. Costumer service will just lie to you and tell you they're "retouching the photos right now!".
Daniel Matthews
Apr 04, 2021
They took 8 months to get back to us, which unfortunately has been the norm for them the past 3 years I worked with them. Then they called and told us they lost our mf photos! I was a senior last year, had to wait until after I graduated to see my photos, and now I dont even get to see my group's final composite that I was in. Literally ruined my senior year composite. Also, if youre a frat/srat that takes ur photos in the fall just know you wont get your composite back until the next school year, IF EVER. F this place never do business with them. Honestly youre better off making your own composite with construction paper and scotch tape.
Andrew Aumen
May 21, 2019
Awful service, they take months to finish the final product and the composites are overly expensive. Our contract said a flat rate of $575 but they tacked on $200 in additional charges. Our organization had 4 people who couldn't make the photoshoot because they decided to schedule us for a 1.5 hour window in the middle of a Tuesday afternoon when most people had class.
They charged us an additional $30 to send them pictures of the 4 members.they literally did not have to go through the hassel of taking those 4 pictures but still charged us double.not to mention shipping and handling managed to be another $120. Ridiculous up charges, slow service, inconvenient photoshoot times, and mediocre composites. Not worth your time or money. Go somewhere else.
They charged us an additional $30 to send them pictures of the 4 members.they literally did not have to go through the hassel of taking those 4 pictures but still charged us double.not to mention shipping and handling managed to be another $120. Ridiculous up charges, slow service, inconvenient photoshoot times, and mediocre composites. Not worth your time or money. Go somewhere else.
